Dr. Strangelove survival kit

After looking at the site posted with vintage WWII medical stuff, I tend to think it's a studio made prop.

One of the telling things is that again someplace I used to have some belted packs my dad had from the Korean War and like the WWII stuff the straps didn't have leather and buckles but rather those canvas like straps that had the crimped metal ends or canvas straps with snaps. the 'buckles' were friction locking with some teeth that grabbed into the strap. I'll have to ask my brother what happened to them. We used to have the big waist belt with my dad's canteen holder with aluminum canteen and what I think was an canvas ammo case of similar construction to those med-kits. We used to play with these things when I was growing up and they may have gotten tossed out after we left home. I haven't thought about them in years.

I notice a lot of the lettering on the vintage examples look silk-screened on canvas bags with a font similar to Avante Garde and Futurama, but the Strangelove prop looks like it uses a stenciled font, maybe meaning they spray painted the lettering on.

That prop on the Kubrick site looks like it might not have the innards or contents inside it anymore as it looks more like it has crumpled paper stuffed in it to my eye. I recall that there was going to be at some point a permanent exhibit of that stuff in England from a documentary about Kubrick I saw a few years ago. They hired a guy to go through all the stuff that Kubrick had kept at his home because he didn't want his props to show up in other films. Other stuff from "2001" other than a few items were all destroyed.

I'd love to have a basement rec room so I could carpet it in that crazy carpet from the Overlook in your avatar picture! "The Shining" is one helluva time capsule of funky 1970's decorating when you see the upstairs hotel rooms!
 
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After looking at the site posted with vintage WWII medical stuff, I tend to think it's a studio made prop.

One of the telling things is that again someplace I used to have some belted packs my dad had from the Korean War and like the WWII stuff the straps didn't have leather and buckles but rather those canvas like straps that had the crimped metal ends or canvas straps with snaps. the 'buckles' were friction locking with some teeth that grabbed into the strap. I'll have to ask my brother what happened to them. We used to have the big waist belt with my dad's canteen holder with aluminum canteen and what I think was an canvas ammo case of similar construction to those med-kits. We used to play with these things when I was growing up and they may have gotten tossed out after we left home. I haven't thought about them in years.

I notice a lot of the lettering on the vintage examples look silk-screened on canvas bags with a font similar to Avante Garde and Futurama, but the Strangelove prop looks like it uses a stenciled font, maybe meaning they spray painted the lettering on.

That prop on the Kubrick site looks like it might not have the innards or contents inside it anymore as it looks more like it has crumpled paper stuffed in it to my eye. I recall that there was going to be at some point a permanent exhibit of that stuff in England from a documentary about Kubrick I saw a few years ago. They hired a guy to go through all the stuff that Kubrick had kept at his home because he didn't want his props to show up in other films. Other stuff from "2001" other than a few items were all destroyed.

I'd love to have a basement rec room so I could carpet it in that crazy carpet from the Overlook in your avatar picture! "The Shining" is one helluva time capsule of funky 1970's decorating when you see the upstairs hotel rooms!

I agree that non of the US mil stuff has leather buckles and such, but I'm not going to abandon the idea that the prop was at least inspired by existing military piece(s).
Maybe something russian Swiss or German?
I'll visit my surplus spot this weekend.

The prop on that website said they also displayed all the contents from it! I need to see that...

I'm pretty sure the Kubrick exhibit was different from his "archive" as seen in "Kubrick's Boxes" documentary you mentioned - which BTW reaired on IFC lastnight! Maybe there's some shots in the Taschen "Kubrick archive" book, anyone got it?

Good thread so far, I'm excited.
 
Heck, if Kubrick could fake up a B-52 cockpit (he didn't have Air Force cooperation and they were kind of nervous about how accurate Kubrick's replica was!) ... then you guys can fake up a best guess survival kit. :lol

What about some CRM-114 code stuff? :love

Karl
 
After looking at the site posted with vintage WWII medical stuff, I tend to think it's a studio made prop.

One of the telling things is that again someplace I used to have some belted packs my dad had from the Korean War and like the WWII stuff the straps didn't have leather and buckles but rather those canvas like straps that had the crimped metal ends or canvas straps with snaps. the 'buckles' were friction locking with some teeth that grabbed into the strap. I'll have to ask my brother what happened to them. We used to have the big waist belt with my dad's canteen holder with aluminum canteen and what I think was an canvas ammo case of similar construction to those med-kits. We used to play with these things when I was growing up and they may have gotten tossed out after we left home. I haven't thought about them in years.

I notice a lot of the lettering on the vintage examples look silk-screened on canvas bags with a font similar to Avante Garde and Futurama, but the Strangelove prop looks like it uses a stenciled font, maybe meaning they spray painted the lettering on.

That prop on the Kubrick site looks like it might not have the innards or contents inside it anymore as it looks more like it has crumpled paper stuffed in it to my eye. I recall that there was going to be at some point a permanent exhibit of that stuff in England from a documentary about Kubrick I saw a few years ago. They hired a guy to go through all the stuff that Kubrick had kept at his home because he didn't want his props to show up in other films. Other stuff from "2001" other than a few items were all destroyed.

I'd love to have a basement rec room so I could carpet it in that crazy carpet from the Overlook in your avatar picture! "The Shining" is one helluva time capsule of funky 1970's decorating when you see the upstairs hotel rooms!

I actually think we still have a ww2 backpack around here with those straps and friction teeth. It was used a lot in civilian stuff too for a long time, probably all the surplus. Heck you can probably find something like a cheap clear topped first aid kit box to use for this. As for the book you can always find a small bible and a small russian phrase book the same size and put them in a custom cover. Pantyhose hasn't really changed in 70 years either. Most of the items are pretty cheap to get. The condoms probably cost more than most of the other items lol. A toy .45 is about 5.00 unless you go for something cheaper. I know the local everything for a buck store only has ripoff robocop guns and .38s for a buck.
 
We do get a few brief glances at the kit and it's contents in the film.

I think I can recognize the Rubles. Those of you more familiar with ... period materials ... may be able to spot something else.


-Mike J.
 
Other stuff from "2001" other than a few items were all destroyed.

That is actually a bit of an urban legend. Remember Kubrick didn't own the 2001 items, the were the property of MGM. What did happen, is that the props and costumes from 2001, and other films were put into storage in a warehouse, and were pretty much forgotten. When MGM in England shut down, that is when the 2001 properties, along with God knows how many other items from other films got trashed.

Items from 2001 did appear in other productions. One of the space maneuvering packs occasionally appeared as set dressing in "Doctor Who" episodes. Some of the chairs were used in "UFO", such as the Helmsman's chair in SkyDiver.

David.
 
I haven't watched my Strangelove DVD in a while I remember they guy who designed all that stuff Ken Adams I think his name was said that they got a visit from US officials who wanted to know where they sourced all the interior of the B52 cockpit which I think was top secret at the time. I can't remember if this was Kubrick pulling his leg or not, but I think the story was they'd found all sorts of bits and pieces of pictures from things like Popular Mechanics and aviation stuff and confabulated the rest.

I replayed that YouTube clip and I know my dad's New Testament from Korea wasn't nearly THAT small. That definitely would have to come with a magnify glass to read.

I've heard a lot of differing Kubrick prop stories over the years. I do know there's one HAL eye and the red helmet Keir Dullea wore that survived. There's a 2001exhibit site on the web that has a ton of info the owner of that site has tracked down.
 
I haven't watched my Strangelove DVD in a while I remember they guy who designed all that stuff Ken Adams I think his name was said that they got a visit from US officials who wanted to know where they sourced all the interior of the B52 cockpit which I think was top secret at the time. I can't remember if this was Kubrick pulling his leg or not, but I think the story was they'd found all sorts of bits and pieces of pictures from things like Popular Mechanics and aviation stuff and confabulated the rest.

It's true.
 
Paid a visit to my local surplus store...no luck or leads on inspiration for the kit.
There was a few Czech first aid kits that were a little big but opened the same way had the top straps, side flaps, and gave me a good idea of what the inside should look like.

My guy there hadn't seen a case like the screenused one or even any thing close to that color green.
They usually have everything - even mythbsters is supplied there.

I keep looking now, bye.
 
Looks like the clear lid has "Strategic Air Command Survival Pack" on it. Doesn't look stenciled, though.

A guess at contents visible in this picture:

The nylon stockings, folded up into square packets, on the far left.

The three bright vertical cylinders in the lower center are probably the lipsticks.

The packet in the lower right, bound with two rubber bands, are the rubles. Judging from their size, those are 'ones.'

Just north of the rubles, below the pistol, is the wrist compass, with what appears to be a molded plastic or rubber strap.
 
Box open.

The hinges look like they might be clear. Thick clear tape? Or clear soft plastic?

Again, I'm guessing those are the nylons on the far left.

That might be a box of ammo north of the compass.

Might also be a box of ammo underneath the rubles.
 
From left to right:

Three pens, one box of "Super Match" ammunition, what may be the wrist compass, what may be a condom, and a tin of "Food Packet, Survival."
 

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